The Atlanta constitution. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1885-19??, 1887-12-20


| 1.-THE hill of Z:on yields
thousand sacred sweets
B fore reach the heavenly fields,
Or walk the golden streets"
The Rev. T. Dewitt Talmage, d. D.,
| preached on "Recreatons, Good and Bad y
| two texts: ! Corinthians, chapter T. verso 81,
| "They thot use this world, as not abusing it,
and Judges, chapter 1G, verse %, "And it came
| to pass, when their hearts were merry, that
| they said, Call for Sampson, that he may
make us sport And they called for Samson
| out Of the prison house, and he made them
sport" DIR. Talmage said:
| We are entering the gayest season OF the
| year. The winter opens before us the gates OF
| thousand amusements, some of them good
| and some bad. One of my texts will show
| you that amusements may be destructive, my
other text will show you that amusements
may be under the Divine blessing and direc-
ton.
There were three thousand people assembled
in the temple of Dragon. They had assem-
bled to make sport of eyeless Samson. They
were ready for the entertainment. They be-
gan to clap and pound impatient for the amuSe-
ment to begin, and they cried, Fetch him
ont! Fetch him outl' Yondcr. / see the
blind old giant coming, led by the hand OF
child into the very midst of the temple. AT
first appearance there goes up shout of
laughter and derision. The blind old giant
pretends he is tired. and wants to rest himself
against the pillars of the house;
so he says to the lad who leads him,
"Show me where the main pillars are" The
lad does so. Then the strong man puts his
right hand on one pillar and his left hand on
another pillar, and, with the mightiest push
that mortal ever made, throws himself for
ward until the whole house comes down in q
thunderous crash, grinding the audience like
grapes in wine press. "And so it came to
Inn, rfe hot fhntT
said, call flor Samson, that he may make us
sport And they ..called for Samson out of the
prison house and he made them sport"
In other words There are amusements that
are destructive, and bring down disaster and
death upon the heads of those who practice
them, While they laugh and cheer, they die
The three thousand who persisted that day in
GAIA are as nothing compared with the tens of
thousands who have been destroyed by sinful
amusemcnts.
But the other text have read implies that
there is a lawful use of the world as well as an
unlawful abuse of it, and the difference be-
tween the man Christian and the man I'M
Christian is, that in the former case the man
masters the world, while in the latter case the
world masters him. For whom did God make
this grand and beautiful world? For whom
this wonderful expenditure of color, this
gracefulness of line this mosaic of the ground
this frescoof the sky this glowing fruitage OF the
orchard aud vineyard, this full orchestra of
the tempest, in which the tree branches flute
and the winds trumpet, and the thunders
drum, and all the splendors of the earth and
sky come clashing their cymbals For whom
did God spring the arched bridge of coloTs
resting upon the buttresses of broken storm
cloud2 For whom did he gather the uphol-
stery Of fire around the window of the setting
sun? For all men, but moro especially for his
own dear children.
sion, you and ''s spread 'so great great
feast after il to celebrate the completion Of the
structure, do you allow strangers to come in
and occupy the place while you thrust your
own children in the kitchen or the barn or the
fields? Oh noa You say, II am very glad to
see strangers in my mansion. but my own sons
and daughters shall have the first right there"
Now, God has built this grand mansion OF q
world, and he has spread glorious feast in it
and while those who are strangers to his grace
may come in, think that God especially in
tends TO give the advantage to his own chill
dren, those who are the sons and the daughters
of the Lord Almighty, those who through
grace can look up and say
ABBA, Father" You can not make
me believe that God gives more advantages to
the world than he gives to the church bought
by His own blood. IT, therefore, people of the
world have looked with dolorous sympathy
upon those who make profession OF religion,
and have said, 'Those new converts are going
down into priyation and into hardship. Why
did not they tarry littlelonger in the world,
and have some of its enjoyments and amuse-
ments and recreations?" | say to such men of
the world "You are greatly mistaken" and
before get through | will show that those
people who stay out of the kingdom of God
have the hardships and self-denialS, while those
who come in have the joys and the satisfac-
tons
This morning, in the name Of the King of
heaven and earth, l serve a writ of election
upon all the sinful and polluted who have
squatted on the domain of earthly pleasures
as though it belonged to them, while I claim, in
behalf of the good and the pure and the true,
the eternal inheritance which God has given
them.
Hitherto Christian philanthropists, clerical
chiefly in denouncing sinful recrea-
tions; but feel we have no
right to stand before men and women in whose
hearts there is desire for recreation amount
ing 10 positive necessity, dcnouncing this and
that and the other thing, when we do not pro-
pose 60 give them something better. God help
Ing me this morning, and with reference to my
last account, shall enter upon q sphere not
usual in sormonizing, but n subject which l
think ought TO be presented at this time. l
propose now 10 lay before You some of the
recreations which are not only innocent, but
positively helpful and advantageous.
In the first place, l commend. among indoor
recreatons, music, vocal and instrumental.
Among the first things created was the bird so
that the earth might have music mt the start
This world, which began with SO sweet a sere-
made, Is finally TO be demolished amidst the
u,
that rs there was music at the start there
shall bo music Mt the close. While this
heavenly art has often been dragged into the
uses of superstition and dissipation, we all
know il may be the means OF high moral cul-
ture. oh, it is grand thing to have our
children brought up amidst the sound Of cul-
tured voices and amidst the melody of musical
instruments. There is in this art
an Undesirable fascination for the household
Let all those families who have the means TO
afford 1t, have flute or harp, or piano or organ
AS soon as the hand is largo enough to COM
pass the keys teach it how TO pick out the
melody. Let all the young men Try this heav-
emily art upon their nature. Those who have
gone into il fully have found in II illimitable
recreation and amusement Dark days, stormy
nights, season Of sickness, business disasters,
win do little toward depressing the soul which
can gallop over musical keys or soar in jubi-
liant lay. IL win cure pain. IL win rest
fatigue. II viii Quell passion. 1t win revive
health. 1t will reclaim dissipation. 1t will
Strengthen tho immortal soul In the battle
OF Waterloo, Wellington saw that the High
landers were falling back; lie said; "What
is the matter there?' He was told that the
band OF music had ceased playing, aud he
called up tic pipors and ordered them to